The Minnesota Vikings beat the struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers in less than convincing style on Sunday afternoon. Indeed, the Vikings may have been merely a Baker Mayfield injury away from having conceded a late-game equalizing touchdown that would have pushed the game into overtime.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell did not hold back on his thoughts of the team’s performance on his side of the ball after the game, despite managing to haul in a 23-16 win to go 3-0 on the season.
“We gotta keep getting better on offense. We gotta get a lot better, from a standpoint of doing some routine things and taking advantage of some opps when we have them.” O’Connell said to the media after the game. “Especially against a defensive front like that where we knew running the football would be difficult at times. I gotta do a better job.”
Vikings Ranked as League’s Worst Offense to Start the Season
Although the defensive performance was once again strong; defensive coordinator Brian Flores once again put up a masterclass in pressure, helping produce six sacks on Mayfield throughout the game; offensively the Vikings once again left much to be desired.
Quarterback Kyler Murray – playing his first full game of his Vikings careers – looked out of sorts as he went 15/29 for 168 yards passing, in addition to a touchdown and interception apiece. He also lacked dynamism in the run game, adding only 17 yards off of 2 rushes: an uninspiring total for a player considered to be one of the NFL’s premier dual-threats at the position.
Even with backup Carson Wentz in, who himself is a former All-Pro and Super Bowl champion, the offense has looked out of sorts. Minnesota ranked dead last total offense heading into the game, averaging just 242.5 offensive yards per game, and followed that up against Buccaneers with 246 yards of offensive output on the day. Improvement – but far from enough.
With Justin Jefferson appearing to have injured his ankle during Sunday’s win, the Vikings’ offense could well be faced with more problems moving forward as they host the 0-3 Miami Dolphins in Week 4.
Kevin O’Connell Blasts Vikings’ Offensive Performance Despite Win